


A Model Wellesley Girl

by Sangerin



Category: Mona Lisa Smile (2003)
Genre: 5 Things, F/F, F/M, Femslash, Minor Character Death, Post-Movie(s)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-21
Updated: 2013-01-21
Packaged: 2017-11-26 08:25:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 496
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/648558
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sangerin/pseuds/Sangerin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Five things that happened to Constance Baker after graduation</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Model Wellesley Girl

i.  
Connie married Charlie in a simple ceremony not long after graduation. She didn't have any bridesmaids, but Joan and Betty and Giselle all sat in the front row of the chapel. Betty cried and Giselle made faces. Connie and Charlie had to argue long and hard with Mrs Stewart for her to accept that they didn't want a big fussy wedding, but Mrs Stewart relented eventually, and kissed Connie warmly as she and Charlie walked down the aisle. Miss Watson sent flowers and a letter written from a sun-drenched balcony in Florence.

ii.  
Giselle arrived unannounced and whispered to Connie that Betty had left her, and she didn't want to be alone. Connie came up with a good excuse to tell Charlie, because all four girls had kept the secret of Giselle and Betty's relationship. Although Connie thought Charlie would understand, Giselle was adamant that he not know.

Giselle cried on Connie's shoulder, and fell asleep with her head on Connie's lap, and Connie stayed up all night, reminding herself how much she loved Charlie and how much Giselle loved Betty, and that you can't return to the past.

iii.  
With Charlie's help, she stuck to her principles when Mrs Stewart wanted Grace and Isabella to go to the same prep school she'd attended. Connie would probably suggest – when the girls were older and closer to thinking about college – that they think about Wellesley. At ten and eight they were too young to be sent away: Connie and Charlie both wanted to keep them close. Connie was kind even as she argued: Mrs Stewart had never had a daughter, and she wanted to live life again through her two dark-haired granddaughters.

iv.  
When a letter came from Joan to say that she was finally going to law school, and that Tommy wasn't used to the idea yet, Connie jumped in the car and drove the four hour journey to Philadelphia to support her. She helped Joan pack and brought her home for a month, until she wrote to tell Tommy he would be welcome again. Tommy arrived, apologetic and understanding, and Connie gave him a lecture on women's rights that made Grace laugh with joy, and made Joan smile. Three years later Connie and Charlie sat with Tommy to see Joan collect her diploma. Tommy was the proudest person in the whole room.

v.  
Dressed in black, the old fashioned way, she stood by the side of Charlie's grave and watched the coffin being lowered into the grave. Isabella had an arm around her shoulder, and Grace stood on her other side. Joan and Tommy stood beside Grace; Betty held Grace's very new baby. Giselle stood next to Isabella as they all mourned the death of a good man. 

These were her friends and family. They couldn't fill the hole Charlie had left in her life and heart, but surrounded by them and supported by their love, this new phase of life couldn't daunt her.


End file.
